Organizational structure and innovative performances of the firm: A dynamic model

Abstract

The aim of this article is to demonstrate analytically the central hypothesis of the model of organizational knowledge creation developed by I. Nonaka (1990; 1994; 1995). This hypothesis supposes that interactions between individuals in a firm promote collective learning and increase innovative performances of the firm. We propose to describe, in terms of mathematical metaphors, different forms of an organizational structure, each describing innovative behavior, in order to compare their dynamical evolution. Either the organization authorizes interactions between the individuals, or the process of innovation is summarized in the individual behaviors in the form of a message. We show that the dynamics of evolution of these two forms of regulation is identical. In other words, we show that the dynamics of innovative behavior where agents interact is the same as the dynamic where the innovative performances of the firm are included in individual's contribution.